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The Creative Call – Chapter Seven: Making Time

Hi! I'm Terry Holliday. I want to inspire you! Here you will find articles to get you thinking about your creative journey. I hope you enjoy the site. If you are new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed for an easier way to keep up to date on new content.. Thanks for visiting and come back often!

Welcome to another article about The Creative Call written by Janice Elsheimer. This week the subject is about making time for your art. I thought about saying I didn’t have time to write this article, but I figured that wouldn’t go over very well. But, I have to admit that sometimes writing for this blog does take away from my art time. I sometimes wonder what specific art the Lord wants me to pursue. I have many art interests. I am sure many of you are the same way. I guess it doesn’t matter as long as you are doing art of some sort.

When Janice wrote about a typical writing day at home and how she would get distracted by the dishes or the garden or whatever, it was as if she was describing me. I have such good intentions and high hopes of getting a lot of artwork accomplished and then hardly do any. Why? Because I get distracted and I do not use my time wisely.

In exercise one in the chapter Janice asks you to make a list of the top three time bandits in your life. My top three time bandits are watching television. surfing the web, and checking email or website statistics.

Janice discusses time management and the different time management styles people have. She includes a quiz which allows you to determine what style you have. I have a random style of managing my time. Doesn’t sound too promising does it? Random time managers need to schedule their time and stick to it.

Janice also does a comparison of divergent thinkers versus convergent thinkers. Each type of thinker comes with its own benefits and drawbacks. So, no bragging!

What can you do to become more productive with your art?

Set aside a specific time to work on your art each day.

Remind yourself that productive artists adhere to schedules.

Resolve to go to the studio or art room and work whether or not you feel inspired.

Do not feel guilty if you take time off to replenish your creative self.

Ways to get more done creatively are:

Say “no” to things people want you to do that are taking time away from your art. Practice different scenarios where you say “no”. Have answers prepared ahead of time.

Remind yourself that you are not indispensable, things will get done without you.

Remind yourself that doing your art is not self-serving. It is God-serving.

Do not answer the phone when you are in the studio.

Check emails only once or twice a day.

Stop watching televison.

Doing some of the suggestions may be difficult. If you can add more art time and less wasted time in your life, I think you will be inspired to do more of Janice’s suggestions. Remember to be patient with yourself. Use baby steps as you make gradual changes in your creativity.

As you begin to create more art you will find that your light will shine brighter for the Lord. You may find that you feel better physically and mentally. Your family may even enjoy being around you more because you are fulfilling your creative call.

Now it is your turn. What are your time bandits? What did you get out of this chapter? Please leave some comments with your thoughts. Of course I understand if you do not have time. 🙂

Here are links to the previous articles I have written about The Creative Call: